For

Against

This is 3GB of multisampled Chinese drum and percussion one-shots and articulations, divided into four categories.

The Jingda low and high hand percussion sets are made up of small gongs, blocks and cymbals. The Drum category features three types of drum: the big jiangu, the smaller huapengu and the pitched 12-piece paigu set. For the jiangu and huapengu, both solo and five-player ensemble patches are included.

Two types of Bell are represented: the qing and the bianzhong. Cymbals and Gongs includes the melodic yunluo set, with keyswitching of two stick types. Overall, it's a riotous and satisfyingly varied collection of velocity-layered metals and drums, well laid out for performance or triggering with the included MIDI loops.

The custom Engine player interface offers only basic editing, though more is available via Engine's Advanced page. Still, what POP lacks in bespoke editing, it more than makes up for sonically.

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